SeaJay
Contributor
Tonight our local Marine Rescue Squadron got the individuals on the dive team together and headed for the pool... You know, to get everyone "on the same page" in terms of diving. What a great idea that was... Seriously.
We did some drills, which our fearless instructor had put together for us.
Jason, if you're reading this... I can't begin to tell you what a great idea this was. What a great list of skills to practice, too... We should do these at least once a week. Fantastic idea...
Included in the list of skills was the action of donning and doffing gear underwater. I had the opportunity to switch gear with another rescue diver... Who was wearing a SeaQuest Raider, one of the highest thought-of BC's on the market. Reluctantly, I traded my Hoadley 6 lb stainless steel backplate with Halcyon Pioneer 27 wing, Koplin "light" STA and Scubapro tank straps (not to mention my Apeks ATX200/ATX50 combo) for his SeaQuest Raider with Aqualung Legend and low profile octo, on "normal" hoses.
He didn't much like my gear... "Too many hoses." He said. "I'd get snagged everywhere. You need something simpler and less prone to snagging." I just smiled and showed him how the longhose was routed. To each his own, I suppose.
This was my first dive in the Raider. I know some people on here dive that BC, so I won't say anything bad... Suffice to say that it wasn't my cuppa tea - know what I mean?
I just want to thank GUE and even Halcyon for the best setup in the world... And I don't mean just the gear. I mean, I am confident in the water... Comfortable... I mean, the skills and the abilities and the clean gear configuration and the whole works. I can't begin to tell y'all what you have done for my diving.
Tonight someone had a scooter in the pool... This was my first ride on a scooter! My gosh... That has to be the coolest thing I've ever done in my whole life... You wanna talk about fun? Holy smokes! I mean, WOW!
Anyway, at one point the scooter got loose from the diver... The trigger locked and it took off like a rocket, headed straight for my buddy. Man, those things move like torpedos when there's no diver attached!
Nobody even saw it coming... Except for me. Yeah, I happened to be facing in the right direction, but the point is that because of the instruction I've had, I was AWARE of this bullet heading towards us. I was able to deflect it with a well-placed blow, and while it still managed to hit my buddy, was dramatically reduced in speed. There was no damage to my buddy or the scooter.
What was even wilder was grabbing the machine as it shot off... I felt like a cowboy as the thing took off with me holding on. It took me 30' to get my hands on the trigger and shut it off. Man, I thought it was going to pull my arms out of their sockets.
The point? The point is that I was squared away underwater... And streamlined and agile and aware and unafraid of hurting my gear and willing to put myself at risk... Because everything's just sorta come together for me underwater.
I love my gear; I love my skill set; I love my training; and I love everything that I have learned and practiced; and much of that has been DIR.
I also tried my buddy's split fins... A pair of Aqualungs that he'd just purchased recently. Yikes. Okay, okay... Yes, they were fast... It took me just a couple of minutes to "tune" my kick to get the most out of them, and once I got that down, yes, they were fast. Probably at least as fast as my Quattros... But missing many other great characteristics that make a good fin. These are another thing "not for me."
At ~300 dives since my first certification a year and a half ago, I am in love with diving all over again (don't ask me how many dives I did BEFORE I got certified). I can honestly say that I do not have one regret in going DIR.
Thank you, GUE... And thank you, JJ, for everything; the gear, the style, the training... Thank you.
You shoulda seen everyone's face when, in a mock rescue situation, I donated a long hose... And while manipulating the "victim's" gear, I reached down with my mouth (no hands) and picked up my backup... All while serving the victim at a comfortable arm's length. Suffice to say I got a lot of compliments from the rescuers... They could see how much sense the whole configuration made. I started getting questions like, "Where in the world did you get that idea? That's really cool... Where do you keep all that hose? I never knew you had all that on you... It's so streamlined..." Yes sir, it is.
I have absolutely no regrets... My training made me look like a million bucks tonight. Thank you, GUE.
We did some drills, which our fearless instructor had put together for us.
Jason, if you're reading this... I can't begin to tell you what a great idea this was. What a great list of skills to practice, too... We should do these at least once a week. Fantastic idea...Included in the list of skills was the action of donning and doffing gear underwater. I had the opportunity to switch gear with another rescue diver... Who was wearing a SeaQuest Raider, one of the highest thought-of BC's on the market. Reluctantly, I traded my Hoadley 6 lb stainless steel backplate with Halcyon Pioneer 27 wing, Koplin "light" STA and Scubapro tank straps (not to mention my Apeks ATX200/ATX50 combo) for his SeaQuest Raider with Aqualung Legend and low profile octo, on "normal" hoses.
He didn't much like my gear... "Too many hoses." He said. "I'd get snagged everywhere. You need something simpler and less prone to snagging." I just smiled and showed him how the longhose was routed. To each his own, I suppose.
This was my first dive in the Raider. I know some people on here dive that BC, so I won't say anything bad... Suffice to say that it wasn't my cuppa tea - know what I mean?
I just want to thank GUE and even Halcyon for the best setup in the world... And I don't mean just the gear. I mean, I am confident in the water... Comfortable... I mean, the skills and the abilities and the clean gear configuration and the whole works. I can't begin to tell y'all what you have done for my diving.
Tonight someone had a scooter in the pool... This was my first ride on a scooter! My gosh... That has to be the coolest thing I've ever done in my whole life... You wanna talk about fun? Holy smokes! I mean, WOW!
Anyway, at one point the scooter got loose from the diver... The trigger locked and it took off like a rocket, headed straight for my buddy. Man, those things move like torpedos when there's no diver attached!
Nobody even saw it coming... Except for me. Yeah, I happened to be facing in the right direction, but the point is that because of the instruction I've had, I was AWARE of this bullet heading towards us. I was able to deflect it with a well-placed blow, and while it still managed to hit my buddy, was dramatically reduced in speed. There was no damage to my buddy or the scooter.
What was even wilder was grabbing the machine as it shot off... I felt like a cowboy as the thing took off with me holding on. It took me 30' to get my hands on the trigger and shut it off. Man, I thought it was going to pull my arms out of their sockets.
The point? The point is that I was squared away underwater... And streamlined and agile and aware and unafraid of hurting my gear and willing to put myself at risk... Because everything's just sorta come together for me underwater.
I love my gear; I love my skill set; I love my training; and I love everything that I have learned and practiced; and much of that has been DIR.
I also tried my buddy's split fins... A pair of Aqualungs that he'd just purchased recently. Yikes.
Okay, okay... Yes, they were fast... It took me just a couple of minutes to "tune" my kick to get the most out of them, and once I got that down, yes, they were fast. Probably at least as fast as my Quattros... But missing many other great characteristics that make a good fin. These are another thing "not for me."At ~300 dives since my first certification a year and a half ago, I am in love with diving all over again (don't ask me how many dives I did BEFORE I got certified). I can honestly say that I do not have one regret in going DIR.
Thank you, GUE... And thank you, JJ, for everything; the gear, the style, the training... Thank you.
You shoulda seen everyone's face when, in a mock rescue situation, I donated a long hose... And while manipulating the "victim's" gear, I reached down with my mouth (no hands) and picked up my backup... All while serving the victim at a comfortable arm's length. Suffice to say I got a lot of compliments from the rescuers... They could see how much sense the whole configuration made. I started getting questions like, "Where in the world did you get that idea? That's really cool... Where do you keep all that hose? I never knew you had all that on you... It's so streamlined..." Yes sir, it is.
I have absolutely no regrets... My training made me look like a million bucks tonight. Thank you, GUE.
We do often work with SAR (Sea/Air Rescue) out of the local Marine Air Base, though. 
